wow i really cant believe they did it i did not think they would sit Fleury.

So what happens if he plays lights out does he stay in until he loses? I saw someone earlier say play him and even if he wins put fleury in game 6, why would they do that? would make no sense if he won

There are some hockey games where a goaltender gets pulled and replaced not because that goalie is himself playing all that badly, but because the team is playing bad in front of him and the coach is trying to send a message to the rest of them. I view this as an equivalent situation. I certainly hope the message gets through.

I feel bad for Fleury but this is a move that had to be done unfortunately. Ride Vokoun until he loses then go back to your #1 goaltender and let him redeem himself. Hopefully he gets that chance and the Pens get out of this round.

Defining moment, that's for sure. Two heads on the chopping block - Fleury and Bylsma. Vokoun plays well, makes Bylsma look like a genius and Fleury a goat. Vokoun ships his pants, Bylsma might have signed his own pink slip.

iWonTheCup87 wrote:wow i really cant believe they did it i did not think they would sit Fleury.

So what happens if he plays lights out does he stay in until he loses? I saw someone earlier say play him and even if he wins put fleury in game 6, why would they do that? would make no sense if he won

You can go back at the end of a series, but if he wins game 5 you keep him in the Islanders mind that Vokoun has their number.

nocera wrote:I feel bad for Fleury but this is a move that had to be done unfortunately. Ride Vokoun until he loses then go back to your #1 goaltender and let him redeem himself. Hopefully he gets that chance and the Pens get out of this round.

Lets not get ahead of ourselves. We still have to see what happens in Game 5.

I think I probably go back to MAF in Game 6 in about 8/10 scenarios. MAF has a history of responding very well to being pulled, so I would think a benching would essentially trigger the same response from him. I'd go back to Vokoun if (1) he absolutely stands on his head or (2) the team plays an extremely tight game in front of him (regardless of outcome in both scenarios). Anything short of those two things, and I'd probably go back to Fleury. Fleury is capable of playing at a significantly higher level than Vokoun at this stage in Vokoun's career, I think.

relantel wrote:It's a best of 3 now. It's a lot easier if they win game 5. But recall SCF09, they lost game 5 in devastating fashion and won 6 and 7. Doesn't matter how they win 2 of 3, just that they do it.

ok i get you are being positive right now which is fine but come on do you really believe this team has the same heart and soul that team did? I dont believe for one second this team will come back and win this series if they lose game 5 esp if they lose it in similar fashion as game 4. I always had that feeling in 08 or 09 that when the pens were down they were not out at all but when they play like this I have no confidence what so ever.